Sam Snyder has pitched her share of good games this season for Hanover Park. But according to shortstop Nicole Fernicola, Snyder delivered her best performance on Sunday.

"I've never seen her pitch like that before," the senior said. "Her change-up was on point today, and she was mixing her pitches in perfectly. It was great."

Snyder kept batters off-balance en route to a four-hitter, as she led top-seeded Hanover Park to a 4-1 victory over eighth-seeded Madison in the quarterfinals of the NJSIAA North Jersey, Section 2, Group 2 tournament in East Hanover.

Hanover Park (18-6) scored runs in the first and second innings to give the junior right-hander an early lead, and she was able to make it stand up. Snyder ran into trouble in one inning, which she escaped, but not with out some controversy.

In the fourth inning, Madison (18-6) loaded the bases with one out. Snyder recorded a force out at home on a come-backer for the second out, which brought Alise Bassolino to the plate with the bases loaded.

Bassolino, who hit an RBI double off the wall in her previous at-bat, drove a ball down the left-field line. The ball appeared to narrowly land fair, but it was ruled foul. Snyder shook it off, and she induced a pop out to escape the jam.

"I was just hoping it was foul; that could have been a definite game-changer," Snyder said. "You just need to not even worry about it. Just worry about your game and pitching your game."

Snyder remained sharp and focused in the 2-1 game, and she retired nine of the final 10 batters she faced. Then in the sixth inning, Hanover Park's offense provided some insurance.

Fernicola walked and Nicole Petrovich doubled to put runners on second and third. After an infield single by Caitlyn George loaded the bases, Alex Cosenzo hit a two-run single to make it 4-1.

"If we're down by one run or two runs, or even if we have a one-run lead, they always want more," Hanover Park coach Kristen Hogan said. "We know Madison can hit, and we can't just have a one-run game. We need a couple more runs, and they did it. I told them if they keep hitting like that, we'll beat some more teams."

Cosenzo finished 2-for-3 with two RBI and one run, while Fernicola went 1-for-2 with a run. Stephanie Deeb struck out four and walked one over six innings, and she also retired 10 straight batters between the second and fifth innings.